Calls for Manuscripts

1 August 2014 is the deadline to submit abstracts for an edited volume on ‘The Material Culture of Magic’. When studying magic, it is crucial to look at the objects that have been produced and what purpose they had, who made them and in what period, whether they represent only a certain historical period or are a long-lasting phenomenon, etc. This volume aims to ‘re-materialise’ magic, to re-anchor it in the physical things that constitute ‘magic’ and recover the social lives, even biographies, of these things. Read more here.

Chapters or case-study contributions are sought for a volume on ‘The Royal Mourner’. This project aims to build upon both studies of emotions, grief and bereavement and studies of Kings and royal families to produce a collected publication on royal mourners and bereavement from the medieval to modern periods. More information can be found here, and preliminary proposals are due by 1 August 2014.

There are three vacancies for contributors to write entries on the scholarship on Renaissance drama in The Year’s Work in English Studies: 1) Shakespeare’s comedies; 2) Editions of Renaissance plays (excluding Shakespeare); 3) Criticism on Renaissance drama (excluding Shakespeare, Marlowe and Jonson). Contributors write a narrative bibliography that records and evaluates the scholarly and critical work in their particular field which a) was published in the calendar year under discussion and b) they think was important. Contributors are able to order review copies of more or less any book which falls within their purview, and it is an excellent way to be on top of the literature in the field. Expressions of interest together with short academic biographies should be sent to: Associate Editor, Dr Richard Wood (Richard.Wood@shu.ac.uk).

Calls for Papers

‘Texts and Contexts’ is an annual conference at the Ohio State University in Columbus. It is devoted to Medieval and Renaissance manuscripts, incunables and early printed texts in Latin and the vernacular languages. The conference–which will be held this year from 14-15 November 2014–solicits papers particularly in the general discipline of manuscript studies, including palaeography, codicology, reception and text history. Abstracts are due by 15 August 2014, and you can read more details here.

In modern understanding, the word ‘object’ signifies something material, spatially defined and functionally determined. These notions are accentuated by the word objectivity, which defines an ideal, systematic mode of grasping objects as ‘subjects’ that presumably operate neutrally and scientifically. In contrast, the Latin word ‘fantasia’ has, since antiquity, signified an apparition or the ability to imagine something that can equally be an image, a concept or, also, an object. A conference scheduled to take place in Munich, Germany from 7–9 October 2015 and called ‘Object Fantasies: Forms & Fictions’ takes the latter alternative meaning, that is, the non-objective experience of objects as the basis for inquiry into the creative act in the reception and construction of objects. 31 July 2014is the deadline for abstracts, and you can read more information online here. Please note that the travel and accommodation costs of the speakers will be covered.

The 21st Annual Interdisciplinary Conference in Medieval and Renaissance Studies will be held in Scottsdale, Arizona from 5-7 February 2015. Papers are welcomed that explore any topic related to the study and teaching of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, especially those that relate to the conference focus on ‘Trades, Talents, Guilds, and Specialists: Getting Things Done in the Middle Ages and Renaissance.’ Read more here, and submit your abstract by 1 August 2014.

From 28-29 November 2014, ‘The Neglected Pillar: Comedy in Literature and Culture’ will take place at National Taipei University of Technology, Taiwan. This conference will explore the nature, history, and structure of the comic in its varied manifestations across time and aesthetic genres and academic disciplines. More information can be found here, and abstracts are due by 15 August 2014.

A panel on ‘Shakespeare’s “Great Feast of Languages”: Contemporary Issues in Shakespeare Translation’ is being formed for the International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies conference to be held in Belo Horizonte, Brazil from 7-10 July 2015. Abstracts are due by 1 August 2014. More details are available here.

The term ad vivum and its cognates al vivo, au vif, nach dem Leben andnaer het leven have been applied since the thirteenth century to depictions designated as from, to or after (the) life. An event hosted by the Courtauld Institute of Art, London on 20-21 November 2014 will explore the issues raised by this vocabulary in relation to visual materials produced and used in Europe before 1800. Abstracts are due by 15 August 2014, and you can read the full call here.

Save the Warburg Institute!

Have you seen this petitionmaking the rounds? The Times Higher Education recently reported that the University of London has taken legal action to challenge its own deed of trust concerning the care and integrity of the Warburg Institute. Possible results of this action include the dispersal of the library, or its relocation abroad. This is not the first timethe Institute has been threatened: it was relocated from Hamburg to London in 1933, endangered by Hitler’s rise to power, and although the University of London accepted the collections in 1944 (the agreement currently under review), similar action was considered in 2010. Read more about the cause, and consider signing here.

Call for Book Proposals

A book series on ‘Political and Popular Culture in the Early Modern Period’ welcomes proposals for monographs or edited essay collections from established authors and first-time authors alike. Published with Pickering & Chatto, the aim of this series is to explore political life during the early modern period in all of its complexity and subtlety, exploring any aspect of social, economic, religious and intellectual life which can be shown to have shed light upon political life and the ways in which it developed. Information on the series and the books published therein can be found on the publisher’s website. Interested authors should contact the series editor Donald J. Harreld (donald_harreld@byu.edu) and the commissioning editor Janka Romero(jromero@pickeringchatto.co.uk).

Curator of Early Books and Manuscripts

The Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin seeks a curator who will provide support for the Ransom Center’s extensive holdings of early books and manuscripts, including promoting access to, and use of, the collections and interpreting them for the Center’s varied audiences. These include 16th- through 18th- century printed works in the Wrenn Library, the Pforzheimer collection of early modern books and manuscripts, the Recusant collection, the Queen Anne collection, and extensive holdings of 18th-century books and periodicals. Read more here, and apply by 15 August 2014.

Postdocs and Fellowships

Global Shakespeare is a new research and teaching collaboration between the University of Warwick and Queen Mary University of London. They are currently looking to fill two 2-year research fellowships to contribute to Global Shakespeare research, teaching and international networking. Regular travel between the two sites will be required, and office space will be available to the postholders at both locations. There is some flexibility in the candidates’ areas of specialisation. Interest in and expertise in new media will be especially valued, and the command of a language other than English is desirable. Read more here, and apply by 23 July 2014.

In association with the electors to the James PR Lyell Readership in Bibliography, the Bodleian Libraries, Oxford propose to appoint a postdoctoral research fellow in manuscript studies for a fixed term of 3 years. The Fellow will undertake research on any aspect of the Canonici collection of Medieval and Renaissance manuscripts in the Bodleian. Research proposals are invited from any area of manuscript specialism, including the study of texts (Latin, Greek, and vernacular), script, decoration and illustration, codicology (including binding), and provenance (including the history of libraries). 21 July 2014 is the deadline for applications, and more details may be found here.

6 August 2014 is the deadline to apply for a 2-year postdoctoral fellowship working within an international research project entitled ‘Marrying Cultures: Queens Consort and European Identities 1500 – 1800’ at the University of Oxford. Applicants must have completed doctoral degree in a relevant discipline relating to early modern Europe (e.g. history, art history, modern languages and literatures, history of music, cultural history), have excellent communication skills, knowledge of another European language and good organisational skills. You can find the advertisement here.

That’s all for this week. As always, thanks for reading! If you have a cfp or other scholarly news that you think would be of interest to our readership, don’t hesitate to get in touch. You can reach the Scholarship Editors at scholarship@theshakespearestandard.com. And feel free to donate to our current fundraising campaign here!